What are some tricks used car dealers use to cover up problems?

Question

I know a few, adding 90W gear oil or transmission fluid to the engine to cover up low oil pressure problems, or making a quick patch from bondo and paint thinner and wax paper to cover up rusted holes in the body.

to be fair I used to work for a low life scum bag used car dealerm and I know all of the tricks, i was wondering if someone else knew the same things

or if someone knows of some tricks i didn't know about

Answer 1

First off, have you ever smelled gear oil? It will burn your nose... if you check the dipstick BEFORE you buy someone else's headache, you would smell the 90w oil. If they added transmission fluid to the old beater's engine, it would smoke like hell when it was running. Transmission fluid expands when it gets hot, swells rubber seals and slips past seals into the combustion chamber, and it doesn't burn very well. One of the biggest tricks they use is to get you to sign papers you aren't reading, and also they want you to take the car now and worry about the paperwork tomorrow or the next day. The worst thing you can do is let them get the idea that you really really really want a specific car. If you let them see that, they are going to sell you that car no matter what it takes. If you act like you don't want it, but don't say why you don't want it, watch how fast they start dropping the price of the car. When they get the price down to where you want it, then you start talking, and if they are reputable, they will pay for the vehicle inspection. Take it to a shop of your choice and get it inspected completely. You can even take an oil sample and have it analyzed for about 30 dollars. It will tell exactly what is in the oil and how long it has been in the car. If someone else buys the car while you are waiting for the oil to be analyzed, then move on to the next used car beater dealer and start over.

Answer 2

Even using your given examples: "One example that some guy who repair my car told me, like if airbag light was on, they don't repair the airbag, they just put a black tape on top of light on dash to cover the red light. So buyer won't know that airbag is not work. Second example is muffler that has gone bad, they just use a metal belt to cover the muffler hole so buyer can't hear them." ------------- 1. You must be a complete FOOL not to know about the indicator test. You know, when you turn the key and ALL the lights come on....if you don't know what should be lighting up, maybe buying cars on your own is just not your niche in life. 2. Can't lean under a car and find that stuff? See my comment to your first scenario. Even that scenario about the bad transmission...if you can't tell that a transmission has only shifted once and the engine sounds awful noisy and high-revving on the highway, this just might not be your hobby. There you have it. You aren't cut out for buying cars on your own and I just buried the blame game that n seemed to point out that you were trying to toss out. Nothing wrong with that per se, because we get bajillions of people who buy junk and we quickly find that they have no idea what they are doing, either. Problem is...you can't just return cars as if they are a package of underwear going back to Wal mart.

Answer 3

Years ago when cars had laquer paint, they used kerosene on them to make them really shine. Detailing a car is often used by dealers to make the car "stand up" in the words of my old UC boss....not necessarily to hide things but to make the car appear as new or unused as possible increasing it's potential value. A 100.00 spent on portering could be worth several hundred in the sale. Some cars we spent hours on to get all the scratches and dents out and filthy carpets. We used ionizers to get rid of smells in the interior. Most of the repairs were honest attempts at fixing defects in the cars and trucks but some were asked of me to do that were in my opinion unethical which I refused to do. Some will replace worn floor mats that show age and wear, replace brake and clutch pedal pads. Putting a bed liner in a truck with a dented, rusting bed. Putting 3 new tires on a truck to match the spare and putting one of the old worn out ones on as the spare.
That's why it's so important to have any used vehicle checked by a good mechanic and find out the history of the vehicle.
"Every silver lining has a cloud" as we would say.

Answer 4

Good car dealers don't use tricks. Believe it or not, there are plenty of good, honest dealers out there

Answer 5

Seat Covers for bad interior

Answer 6

yea, they also use extra thick engine oil, probably to hide that ticking noise from a worn engine and they start up the cars in the morning and let them run a while to make sure the car doesn't hesitate, when a potential buyer comes in and starts the ignition.

Answer 7

Oatmeal in the radiator will plug pinhole leaks. For a little while.
Sawdust was used in the past to quiet a noisy differential...again, very short-term solution to hide symptoms.

Answer 8

Sawdust in the oil pan to lower bottom end noise
Thick oil in the pan - to quiet lifter ticks.
power washing the engine clean - hiding the leaks from sight.
new brake pads - but wore out rotors - not replaced

Answer 9

Take a mechanic with you

Answer 10

Color wax helps too.... we've "washed off" a few paint jobs!